Bag filling device



June 16, 1931. P. LASSEN 1,310,772

BAG FILLING DEVICE I Filed June 2, 1928 3Sheets-Sheet 1 ATTORNEYS June 16, 1931. p, LASSEN BAG FILLING DEVICE Filed June 2, 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 F .3.

Peteril'fi ATTORNEYS June 16, 1931. P. LASSEN BAG FILLING DEVICE Filed June 2, 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVE NTO R PZZBI'LQJJGH; a Y

ATTORNEYS Patented June 16, 1931 PATENT PETER LASSEN, F ROANOKE, TEXAS BAG FILLING DEVICE Application filed June 2, 1928. Serial No. 282,484.

This invention relates to device for filling bags with grain or other fluent material and aims, among other objects, to provide a chute having an adjustable measuring hopper and improved operating mechanism for a pair of valves cooperating with the chute. Other aims and advantages will appear in the accompanying specification considered in connection with the illustrative embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings, Where- Fig.1 is a front elevation of a bag filling chute and mechanism embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the chute shown in Fig; 1; I

Fig. 8 is a side elevation looking toward the left in Fig. 1;

' Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line 2 44inFig.3;.

Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the chute showing the valve operating mechanism in an intermediate position;

Fig. 6 is a cross sectional view taken on the line 66 of Fig. 5; and

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary front elevation of a chute having a modified form of bag filling spout attached thereto.

Referring particularly to the drawings, see

Figs. 1, 2 and 3, there is shown a chute 10 which, conveniently, may be made of sheet metal and may be of such shape as to be attached to a hopper containing grain or other fluent material to be discharged in measured quantities into bags or other containers. Herein the chute has an enlarged measuring compartment 11 which is adapted to be filled with material from the hopper (not shown) by manipulation of an inlet valve 12, while the discharge valve 13 is closed. The idea is to first fill the measuring compartment with the material, close the inlet valve and hold it closed while the discharge valve 13 is opened to permit the material to flow out of a discharge spout 14:

into a bag or other container.

Now referring to the means for adjusting the capacity of the measuring compartment 11, so that desired measured quantities of material may be discharged, there is shown in Fig. 4, a pair of metal plates 15 of the same width as the inside of the chute and these plates are so connected and arranged that they may be moved toward or away from each other and will always remain parallel whereby the material contained between them will flow freely through the discharge spout. That is to say, no choking restrictions are made. To this end, the plates are pivoted at their upper ends to pivot pins 16 by means of upwardly diverging sections 17, pivotally joined at'18 to the plate members '15.

The mechanism for adjusting the plates is shown as comprising a lever 19 connected by bell cranks and links 20 and 21 respectively 55 (Fig. 2) to opposite bent arms 22 projecting through the side wall of the hopper and connected to pivoted arms or plates 23 which, in turn, are pivotally connected to the plates '15 at 24-. Herein, the arms or plate'members 23 are parallel with the pivoted sections 17 of the plates 15 so as to give a pantograph motion; that is to say, the plates 15 will be parallel in any position of adjustment. The lever 19 is adapted to beheld in adjusted position on a sector 25 by any suitable means such as a grippingfinger 26 adapted to be clamped on the sector by a bolt and nut 27.

The mechanism for operating the inlet and discharge valves 12 and13 is shown as comprising a hand lever 28 having arms 29 pivoted on the front and rear walls of the measuring hopper.

In the present example, the front and rear walls of the hopper have strap metal' braces 85 or bars secured to them to provide means for pivoting the lever arms 29 tothe walls of the hopper and also to provide for securing pivot bolts for the valve operating arms. Each of the valve operating'arms is shown as comprising a U-shaped strap metal member 31 pivotally mounted on bolts 32 projecting from the strap metal member 30 and the arms at the front of the chute extend beyond r the pivot bolts as shown in Fig. 1, Also, the arm 29 of the operating lever extends beyond its pivot'bolt and this arm is connected on opposite sides of. the pivot bolt to the extensions of the valve arms 31 by means of slottedlinks 33 so arranged that, when the lever is operated, only one of the valves will be moved during any part of its stroke; that is to say, the arrangement is such that when the lever is moved initially downwardly the valve 12 will be closed and upon further movement, after the valve 12'is closed, the valve 13 will be opened.

Herein, both of the valves 12 and 13 are normally urged towards closed position by means of a single tension spring 34 (Figs. 1, 4 and 5), secured at its lower end to the extension of the valve arm 31 and, at its upper end, to an ear 35 on the arm 31' of the valve 12. This arrangement is such that, when the operating lever 28 is-lowered'or pulled down to an intermediate, position (shown in Fig. 5),thetension spring will close the valve 12 and, at the same time, maintain the valve 13 in its closed position. It will be observed that .the slot in the lower link 33 permits the lever to move to its intermediate position without moving the arm 31. Further downward movement of'the lever will then rock the lever arm 31 and open the valve 13 against the tension of spring 34.

To maintain the valves normally in the position shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, there is shown a pair of springs 35 and 36 each connected to the operating lever on opposite sides of itspivot at the rear of the chute. Herein, there is shown a. hooked ear 35a on the arm 29 at the left of the. pivot viewed in Fig. 2 and the extreme end of the armat the right of the pivot also has a hooked end 36a for the other spring. These springs are conveniently connected t oclips 37 or other suitable means carried by the pivot bolts 32 for the valve arms. The combined strengths of these two springs acting on the pivoted lever arm are such, as to overcome the tension of spring 34 which normally acts toclose the valve 12. Thus, they act to counterbalance the tension of the spring 34 and this enables the lever 28' to be moved to its intermediate position without much resistance. After the lever is moved to its intermediate position, the effective leverage of the two springs 35 and 36 acting on the arm 29 is somewhat diminished due to the arcuate movement of the hooks toward a vertical plane passing through the pivot.

During the second half of the downward .movementof the lever 28, the valve 12 remains closed and the upper slotted link 33 moves freely with respect to it. When the lever is released, the discharge valve 13 is immediately closed by the spring 34, while the upper valve is opened by the lever and its connecting link 33 after the lever has passed upwardly beyond its intermediate position. The two springs 35 and 36 raise the other material, it is desirable to provide bag engaging prongs somewhat similar to those described and claimed in my Patent No. 1,639,517, dated August 16, 1927 Herein, the filling spout 14 is shown as being detachable, being adapted to be bolted or otherwise secured to the chute. The lower end portions of this bagfilling spout is shown as having a flange 38 projecting outwardly from its rear wall so that the mouth of a bag may be slipped over theend and gripped against the walls of the spout and the flange will prevent it 'from slipping off while it is being filled. It is understood that the operator willgather upthe slack in the mouth of the-bag at the front side. Within the filling spout there isshown a pair of shafts 39 carrying hook shaped bagengaging prongs 40 arranged to be rockedand projected through openings 41 in opposite side walls of the spout. Thus, when the mouth of a bag is gripped or held taut around the filling spout by theoperator the prongs willv project through the bag and prevent it frombeing pulled olf While itis being. filled.

To operate the prongs automatically when the discharge valve 13 is being opened,.there is shown a crank arm 42on each of the shafts 39 at one side of'the filling spout and these rocker arms or cranks are connected to be .crank arms 42 will be turned to project the prongs through their openings 41 (see the dotted position in- Fig. 5). By this arrangement, the discharge valve will not begin to: open until the prongs are initially projectedthrough their respective openings and through the mouth portions of a bag.

If the bagfiller is to be used for filling paper bags which will tear on the projecting prongs, a special filling'spout 14" having a reduced lower end may be secured to the end of the chute 10 (see Fig. 7). In this instance, the reduced lower end of the filling spout has an outwardly extending lip or flange 38 extending entirely around it so that, when the mouth of the paper bag is gathered and gripped around the lower end of the spout above the flange, it will prevent the bag from slipping off due to the welght. The corners of the flange may be rounded off so that they will not tend to cut or rip" the paper. It will be noticed that it is qu te a simple expedient to change the spouts. The preferred form of filling spouts for cloth bags and its operating links and prongs can be removed as a unit.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that a bag filling device of the character described is very easilyoperated'; that the mechanism positively insures that the measuring chamber will be filled with material after each bag is filled; that no material can be delivered through the spout from the main hopper after the discharge valve is opened; and that the mechanism is all automatically restored to its normal position to receive a charge of material after it is operated. Further, the bag engaging prongs are operated automatically when the valves are actuated by a single main lever and the measuring chamber can easily be adjusted to discharge different measured quantities without protesting any restrictions or barriers which would obstruct the free flow of material to the discharge spout. Moreover, the whole thing can be made and sold as a relatively simple compact unit to be attached to existing hoppers or chutes from which measured quantities of material are to be discharged.

Obviously, the present invention is not restricted to the particular embodiment thereof herein shown and described. Moreover, it is not indispensable that all the features 3 of the invention be used conjointly, since they may be employed advantageously in various combinations and sub-combinations.

What is claimed is:

1. A measuring and sacking device comprising, in combination, a chute having a measuring compartment therein; inlet and outlet valves in said chute; a lever having valves; a spring normally tending to close' both of said valves; and springs connected to said lever to counteract said valve closing spring and acting to restore the lever to a position wherein the valves are held in position for the measuring compartment to receive a charge. i

3. A measuring and sacking device comprising, in combination, a chute having a measuring compartment; a pair of pivoted valves connected to the chute; a hand lever pivoted to the chute between said valves;

slotted links connecting the pivoted lever to said valves; a tension spring also connected to said valves and normally tending to close them; a spring connected to said lever and counteracting said valve closing spring whereby to maintain the lever at one extreme end of its stroke so that one of said valves will be open while the other is closed; and

a discharge spout connected to the lower end of said measuring compartment.

4. A measuring and sacking device comprising, in combination, a measuring compartment; inlet and discharge valves at the opposite ends of the measuring compartment; a discharge spout detachably connected to the lower end of the measuring compartment; bag engaging prongs associated with the discharge spout and arranged to be projected therefrom; and a single control lever operatively connected to said valves and to said prongs and constructed and arranged normally to close the inlet valve and thereafter simultaneously open the discharge valve and project the prongs from the discharge spout.

5. In a measuring and sacking device of the character described, a measuring com partment having apair of adjustable plates mounted therein and adapted to move toward and away from each other in parallel planes; hinged chute sections connected to said plates; and a single operating lever connected to said plates; the connections for said lever including hinged members parallel with said hinged sections whereby the plates are moved pantograph fashion.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aflixed my signature.

PETER LASSEN. 

